The Hokies, losers to Kansas in last season's Orange Bowl, are perennial participants in the BCS boogie. Not so for their New Year's Day dance partner. With their initial Big East title, the Bearcats earned a first BCS bowl berth.

While the No. 12 Bearcats seek to further validate a historic 11-2 season, the No. 21 ACC champion Hokies hope to culminate their 9-4 season on a redemptive high.

"It's probably a little bit more exciting now for the simple fact that last year we left on not too good of a note," Hokies cornerback Victor "Macho" Harris said. "We've got a chance to redeem ourselves now."

Said Bearcats coach Brian Kelly: "You never really arrive, but when you get a chance to be part of the Orange Bowl, it certainly changes the way your program is looked at. We weren't much of a team that was regarded nationally as a contender for this destination. I think we'll at least be considered now a team that each and every year has an opportunity to get back here."

Transformed townWith the Cincinnati Bengals entering the final NFL weekend 3-11-1 and the Reds probably facing a ninth consecutive losing season in 2009, the football Bearcats have easily won over Queen City sports enthusiasts.

Their basketball brethren are wildly popular with two national championships and six Final Four appearances, but even that team hasn't emerged from the second round of the NCAA tournament in eight of its last nine trips dating back to 1997.

Quarterback Tony Pike is a Cincinnati native who can attest to the transformation.

"Coming to the games as a child and seeing from where we've come, where 16,000 was a good crowd for us, to now we want to sell out every game," Pike said. "For us to do that and the buzz we've created around campus and all the people I know who are making the trip down here, it shows people are behind us."

Added Kelly: "It transcends just our campus. It's the city of Cincinnati. For many years it's been a basketball town and a pro town. The nice part about it now is that it's a college football town."

The Bearcats have sold just short of 14,000 of their 17,500-ticket allotment.

Beamer changes planVirginia Tech coach Frank Beameris preparing differently for this Orange Bowl after the Hokies lost the last one and four of their last five bowl appearances, including a 2005 trip to the Sugar Bowl against Auburn.

The Hokies have practiced more often and done more hitting during the sessions.

"We learned a lot," Harris said. "I think the coaches learned a lot, too. That is why they changed a lot of things."